The Everyday

To celebrate New Year's Eve we had a few friends over and ate good food, played LRC, and let our kiddos play.  This is the only picture I have of our celebration. This was pre-food on the serving table. I was able to use both of my new tablecloths from Christmas--one in the kitchen and one in the dining room. 2023 has been a good year for our family. We went on lots of fun trips. Deer Valley and Hawaii with Shaeffers (Marty bleached his hair for Hawaii), Pagosa (with Adairs, Kents, and Shaeffers), Emi and I visited family in PA and MN, and we went as a family to Japan and saw lots of people and places we love. We attended 3 of our siblings' graduations--Nick (Olympus), Bubs (BYU), and Courtney (Columbia). We bought a home together. And had lots of visitors! Dan and Angela, Nick, Bubs, and Dave & Steph's family. Marty and I went on lots of fun dates and both grew spiritually. Marty started a new role at work--Hedge Accounting. I prioritized my mental health. I ran my fir

I got a text from one of our friends in the ward this afternoon. Her daughter was home from college on break and was wondering if she could watch Emi for a bit. It was so nice of her to offer! What she didn't know is that Marty had to work this weekend for quarter end, and so having her help made a huge difference. Feeling grateful for kind people.  A picture Paige H. took while watching Emi.

In the morning we had Peter, Alex, Isaac, and Rachel over for breakfast. Dan made us all breakfast burritos and they were so yummy. Afterwards, Isaac went through the tunnel and rock wall over and over and over again. Emi enjoyed following him, and Rach enjoyed hanging with her mama. It was good to see the Rosen's one last time before heading back to Denver. Just an hour before we left to the airport, Diane stopped by. She came to visit and deliver Emi the cutest Nuggets shirt. From there, it was goodbyes and off to the airport. We have loved the past few weeks here in Utah. We are blessed with an incredible family. We had 8 pieces of luggage + Emi. haha. Emi gave me and Marty a late Christmas present--she did amazing on the flight and drive home. 

Grandpa played with Emi this morning. I watched as Grandpa let Emi dump crayons out of a bin over and over again and then he'd put them back in the bin for her. It was cute and reminded me that it's okay to let her dump things.haha. Emi loves hanging in Grandpa's office. In the afternoon Emi and I went and visited with Peter, Alex, Jackie, and the kiddos at my parent's house. Isaac was in such a funny mood! And Rachel was sweet as ever. After we were done visiting we came back to the Shaeffer's just in time to go to The Grid. I have never been go karting before and was a bit scared (what else is new? haha) but didn't want to be lame. So I tried it and had such a good time! Angela and I had planned on each doing a race, and taking turns watching Emi on the other race, but because she was still feeling under the weather she opted to let me do both races. I was really excited to do both races because it was so so fun. On the second race I had an unfortunate mishap

In the morning Emi and I headed over to Lesley's house to hang out with her and her girls (5 of us girls in total). It was fun to catch up and have our little ones play together. We're honestly better at making time to hang out now that I live out of state than when I lived in state. Funny how that works! The rest of the day we took it easy. Michael and Angela weren't feeling well today which was a bummer.  Is it really the holiday season if several people aren't sick throughout it?

A few of us watched "The Princess Switch" this morning. It's the kind of movie that you know the entire plot after watching the first few minutes of the movie. We were making fun of it, but somehow we made it through the whole movie. There's something satisfying about predictability in sappy movies. This evening after we went to dinner at Asian Star we watched "Game Night." I'd watched it before, but had forgotten the ending so it was very suspenseful and also funny.  After the movie, Marty, Nick, and Chris played Zombies and the rest of us did NYC Crossword Puzzles together. Courtney would project each puzzle on the screen, read the clues, and the rest of us would pitch in to help solve the puzzle. There's a very slim chance I would be able to solve these by myself, but with everyone working together it makes it really fun and finish-able! Random picture from today-- Emi walked over to the window so she could watch Grandpa outside. 

Christmas morning was relaxing. After Emi woke up, Marty, Emi, and I watched "The Grinch" (old version of course!) and talked with my parents over FaceTime. Then Marge arrived while Grandma and Grandpa cooked up a delicious waffle breakfast for all of us to enjoy.  After breakfast began the present opening. Emi got the cutest chef outfit (to go with her kitchen) and another year of My Gym classes from grandma and grandpa. Marty got new golf clubs, luggage, and a coupon to go choose out a golf bag and driver with his Dad. I got a new curling iron (I'm going to finally learn how to curl my hair haha), Wicked tickets, and beautiful tablecloths.  It's so exciting watching everyone open their presents and seeing their reactions. While everyone was excited about their presents Emi enjoyed playing with the gift bags some of the presents were wrapped in. haha.  The rest of the day was chill. We ate lots of food--charcuterie style--and spent time together. In the evening we wa

Christmas Eve always feels special. Emi's favorite place at Grandma and Grandpa's--Kershaw's bed.  In her favorite spot again. The boys watching the Cowboy's Game. Look at this beautiful set up. We each made a part of the meal. I was in charge of the veggie tray. All the fam minus Courtney. All the fam minus me. Chris is always so cute with Emi. He's going to be a great dad one day. Emi was Mary in our nativity. Marty was the donkey. Don't let this picture fool you. She had her outfit off within a few seconds. haha. Carillon Bells.  Angela and I played "Angels we Have Heard on High" and "Jingle Bells".  Courtney accompanied the family as we sang a few Christmas songs. Chris played "Happy Christmas, War is Over" as we sang. Twister with the family.  I challenged everyone to a plank competition. Nick won...but I took a close second haha.  Not pictured: *Going to our church Christmas service together. I honestly really like when Christ

Courtney and Michael got here today which means the Shaeffer gang is complete. Everyone will be here to celebrate Christmas. In the evening we all headed to Itto's. Their sushi is sooo good and I love their gyoza and edamame too. Emi was being a little bit moody during the meal, so Marty whisked her off to the car after our meal was about done. She was not happy about everything and cried all the way to Zoo Lights. Maybe screamed is a better word to use. Poor Courtney and Michael were driving with us and had to listen to 20 minutes of an unhappy child (After that I'm hoping they still want to have kids in the future after that? haha). Emi only wanted me to hold her at Zoo Lights and didn't want to be in her stroller. Even though it can be frustrating at times when she's being needy, it's good to feel loved.

Yesterday afternoon I was having some digestive issues and my stomach was not on my side again this morning. I had planned to meet my friend Kana in Provo but wasn't sure if I would make it down okay with my problems. But Kana was visiting from Japan and I haven't seen her in over 2 years, so I resolved to go anyway. I'm glad I did!  In the afternoon Emi had some quality grandma and grandpa time. Marty and I peeked outside to watch Emi jumping on the trampoline with grandma and grandpa. It's so special getting to watch people love on your child. We headed to World of Illumination in the evening. Emi preferred to watch the lights as she climbed throughout the car.

Marty, Dan, Angela, Emi and I headed up to Alta in the morning. I put Emi in Alta's daycare, Marty put me in a ski lesson ;), and the others skied together. JK I actually really wanted to be in a ski lesson. Last year Dan and Angela asked if I would like to take a lesson on our Deer Valley trip and I ended up taking 2 lessons because I liked it so much. So this year when they asked again I was excited to get to go. I love having a teacher give me pointers and push me. It's much easier for me to listen to a teacher than my husband. It's not that Marty's not a good skier (he's amazing actually)... it's just easier for me to learn from someone I'm not super comfortable with.  Pre-ski lesson. Talking with my instructor about my abilities.   Angela, Dan, and Marty on the slopes. Emi went sledding at the daycare. I would 10/10 recommend Alta's daycare. They did an incredible job sending updates throughout the day and creating a cozy space at the lodge.  We did

Because Mom and Dad were going to be out of the country this year, I knew that there wouldn't be any homemade Christmas chocolates. I've always wanted to learn the ins and outs of chocolate making because it's one of my favorite Christmas traditions, but have never put in the work to learn how. So I reached out to Grandma Furner and she agreed to host us (all the Rosen siblings minus Dave--but plus some spouses) and teach us how to make chocolates.  Today was the chocolate making day! Grandma had done a ton of prep work beforehand, and I now understand why. Chocolate making is no joke. It takes a lot of time and many things have to be done "just right" to have them turn out well. We had a blast...and I think we all left with a bit more respect for my mom and the time she puts into making these each year.  Making chocolates. Grandma in her element. We learned that Bubs has a hidden talent--chocolate dipping. Her chocolates looked amazing. Rachie loved her chocolate